Skift Take
When convention bureaus develop their own meetings industry research, it positions them as leaders in event tech and meeting design innovation, and it differentiates them from their competitors. It takes a lot of work, resources, and experimentation to do it effectively, though.
The Future of Meetings & Events
Our feature story this week focuses on the German Convention Bureau’s strategy to differentiate itself in the European market by developing and sharing an extensive body of meetings industry research and educational content.
The research highlights trends in event technology and meeting design, while the growing volume of blog content promotes the different German cities as important areas of expertise in various advanced industries.
“We want to shape the future for our German, European, and international customers, and continue positioning Germany at the forefront of innovation,” Matthias Schultze, managing director of the GCB, told me. “Even though we’re ranked number one in meetings in Europe in the ICCA (International Congress & Convention Association) standings, we can never rest on our laurels.”
Send me your feedback on Germany’s research and content strategy to [email protected]. All emails will be kept private unless advised otherwise. Read the full story here.
— Greg Oates, Senior Editor
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TOURISM, HOSPITALITY & VENUES
German Convention Bureau Bets Big On Event Tech Research and the Value of Promoting Cities As Knowledge Hubs: Germany has one of the most innovative business strategies and fresh content models to attract more international conferences by focusing on extensive research development and sector-specific industry expertise. But managing and delivering on those effectively and consistently comes with its growing pains. Read more at Skift
Second Tier Cities Are More Vital Than Ever: With many high-profile meeting destinations becoming prohibitively expensive, some event organizers are shifting their attention to smaller cities across North America. Markets from Nashville to Pittsburgh are now attracting more conferences due to large investments over the last decade in conference centers, hotels, airports, and walkable downtown cores. Read more at Successful Meetings
Marriott Officially Debuts New Luxury Group for Eight of Its 30 Brands: With so many hotel brands moving into the luxury space, this move by Marriott was important to help differentiate some of the brands. Read more at Skift
Hotels Are Celebrating Record Highs While Keeping a Cautious Eye to the Future: Attendees at Omni Hotels’ “Be Collaborative” professional development series in Frisco, Texas were given an inside look at the challenges some planners face due to the booming success of the hotel industry. Read more at MPI
Leveraging a Destination’s Intellectual Capital for Your Meeting: A primer on intellectual capital, including defining it, identifying it in a meeting destination, and understanding how it can support and amplify your meeting’s content. Read more at Convene
Next Generation Meeting UX
Cendyn Buys Guestfolio to Expand Its Hotel Digital Marketing Solutions: The acquisition of Guestfolio will enable Cendyn to offer a more comprehensive feature set on the hotel-marketing side of the business as Guestfolio is stronger in the boutique hotel segment. Read more at Skift
Deconstructing and Designing the Second #BCTECH in Vancouver: Master planner Tahira Endean explains her event design approach for #BCtech and her feedback on attending the EDC Event Design Certificate Program at the University of Amsterdam. Read more at the Event Canvas Foundation
See How This Conference Engages Millions of People Who Don’t Attend: At the National Association of Realtors’ event in Orlando this year, the organization chose 30 attendees to share their event experiences online in exchange for a photo and bio on the event website. A small event team curates and distributes the content. Read more at BizBash
Need 5 Reasons to Go to CES? Here you Go: Attendance at the annual Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas next month is expected to exceed the 177,000 people who showed up last year. The most interesting evolution over the last few years has revolved around how companies are integrating technology into their brand engagement strategy. Read more at AdAge
Top 10 Highlights from HPE Discover London: Here’s a good example of how any conference organizer can create a compelling event wrap-up through a multimedia convergence of YouTube videos, Periscope videos, Soundcloud recordings, and photos and text. Read more at TechNative
The Power of Story: PCMA CEO Deborah Sexton explains why compelling stories can help planners personify their organization’s brand, engage people better, and drive business growth. Read more at Convene
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The Skift Meetings Innovation Report is curated by Skift Senior Editor Greg Oates [[email protected]]. The newsletter is emailed every Wednesday.
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Photo credit: The Computer Electronics Show (CES) kicks off January 5th in Las Vegas. CES